Author exhibitor applications for the 2025 Book'd Literary Arts Festival are now open! Apply below!
Applications will close on June 13, 2025. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis through September 2025.
Book'd Literary Arts Festival will take place Saturday, November 1, 2025. The festival will feature a diverse group of regional authors, each with their own booth where you can purchase their works, have works signed, find out more information about them, etc. When evaluating applications, we consider not only a book’s literary merit but we also take community standards into consideration as well as the author's connection to Region 8.
Thank you for your interest in applying to the 2025 Book'd Literary Arts Festival!
Authors are accepted to Book'd Literary Festival from applications on a rolling basis; we advise sending us your application the earliest you are able to!
To be considered for this year’s festival, please submit all of the following:
- Complete the fillable, online 2025 Festival Submission Form found below.
- A press kit with clippings and reviews and an author bio, including past publications when applicable, and any other information that often helps us evaluate the submission. (Can be submitted in the form or emailed to abigail@nelaarts.org.)
- A cover letter (no more than a page). Please include any additional information if needed regarding local connections, or anything else we should know to best evaluate your submission. (Can be submitted in the form or emailed to abigail@nelaarts.org.)
Note:
- Physical copies of your works are not required in order to have an author's table, but they are encouraged.
- Incomplete applications will not be considered. Please make sure you include all materials. Your application will not be considered complete until we have received all required materials.
- The Arts Council will accept author applications between May 1 and June 13 for the 2025 Book'd Literary Arts Festival. Complete applications (all requested materials) must be received by June 13, 2025.
- Should you be selected to be a part of the festival, you will hear back no later than September 2025.
- All authors who are invited to participate will be supplied one author's table for setup. Author's may sell and/or sign works at their table.
The festival will consider books in the following genres:
- Art and architecture
- Children’s literature, including picture book, middle grade, and young adult
- Cookbooks and food writing
- Fiction — all genres
- Narrative nonfiction — history, biography, memoir, and essays
- Poetry
Book'd Literary Arts Festival focuses on the promotion of literature and literary culture; books on the topics of self-improvement, how-to, or books strictly of academic or religious interest will not be considered.
Self-published titles will only be considered if they meet the following criteria:
- Printed copies are available to sell.
- The work has been professionally edited and a marketing plan is in place.
- The author maintains an accessible website.
The consideration for self-published titles that meet the above criteria will be the same as traditionally published books, as outlined above. For the 2025 festival, we will not accept self-published titles that exist only in ebook format.
Works containing AI-generated text without identification, presented as the author’s own writing,
are not eligible.
